hello world :)

[photo41]

Hi, I am new here, interested in kitchen knives, and keen to learn and improve my skills

for now, I am interested in a 2 Damascus knife set with one utility and one santoku.

cheers

 

[Nemo]

Welcome to the forums.

 

[Benuser]

Welcome aboard!
I hope I will be able to explain why a utility and a santoku are largely redundant and a Damascus is problematic where maintenance is concerned.

 

[photo41]

Welcome aboard!
I hope I will be able to explain why a utility and a santoku are largely redundant and a Damascus is problematic where maintenance is concerned.

thank you Benuser, it is much appreciated.
If not santoku/utility, what kind of knives would you advise for small veggies?
I love the Damascus pattern, so I'll try to continue looking for something like that in spite of the maintenance problems

 

[Benuser]

thank you Benuser, it is much appreciated.

If not santoku/utility, what kind of knives would you advise for small veggies?

I love the Damascus pattern, so I'll try to continue looking for something like that in spite of the maintenance problems

Nothing wrong with a santoku, if used mainly for push cutting. For forward motions, as in traditional 'guillotine and glide', too low a tip might become an obstacle. When sharpening for friends I rarely see a santoku without a damaged tip. But small gyutos and santokus can be very similar.
My problem wasn't about the santoku as such, but about the combination with the 'utility' knife. I really can't see what a utility knife can add.
The Damascus may look gorgeous when brand new and unused, the finish doesn't contribute in any way to its performance, and it hinders proper sharpening. If you want to maintain a blade's geometry any sharpening starts by thinning behind the edge. This will inevitably result in scratches. In the case of a Damascus having the look restored involves polishing the entire surface with different grits, and finally re-etching. A lot of work for a simple sharpening.

 

[photo41]

thank you for your answer.
I don't cook much and the santokus that I've used there were all a good experience.
Regarding the utility knife, I need something small - 3.5 inches at most - with a slightly curvier blade for small things like an apple, an envelope or a parcel.

 

[jedy617]

Spyderco UK pen knife! Also I love my santokus, welcome fellow santoku fan.

 

[photo41]

well thank you but the Spyderco has no damascus steel version.
And my feelings are not too much inclined towards wide triangular shape blades, as I haven't used any.
Your advice opened the door for folding knives, so I have found something on Amazon that fits my needs and also the legal ones.

I'll see what I get next Friday and share my feelings here later.

 

[Benuser]

thank you for your answer.

I don't cook much and the santokus that I've used there were all a good experience.

Regarding the utility knife, I need something small - 3.5 inches at most - with a slightly curvier blade for small things like an apple, an envelope or a parcel.

I see. Had in mind a so called 'utility knife' as often sold with sets: totally useless mini-chef's knives of some 15cm, wider than a petty. Sorry for my Pavlov-reaction. With the small knife you're looking for: they have only a small contact area with the board, get some abuse, all resulting in a lot of sharpening, and a short life. Don't spend too much.

 

[photo41]

I see. Had in mind a so called 'utility knife' as often sold with sets: totally useless mini-chef's knives of some 15cm, wider than a petty. Sorry for my Pavlov-reaction. With the small knife you're looking for: they have only a small contact area with the board, get some abuse, all resulting in a lot of sharpening, and a short life. Don't spend too much.

thank you very much, it really is much appreciated.
I can't spend much and asking questions here will, undoubtedly, be at the same time informative and economical

In terms of sharpening, I have a Chinese cheap(er) sharpening system with stones from 400 onwards to several thousands but I haven't used it in a long time. Last I remember buying a few diamond stones for it, but they are probably very aggressive and more likely get some use for chisels and scissors.

I have tried my hand at wet stone sharpening and polishing but ... we don't get along

 

[Benuser]

If ever you want to try hand sharpening again, start with a thin, cheap, carbon steel one. Thin, because with neglected knives often there's so much thickening behind the edge that a large amount of steel has to got abraded before you even can think about putting an edge on it. Carbon steel, because it is little abrasion resistant. It allows you to jump immediately to the basics of sharpening: raising a burr, chasing it, getting rid of it. Cheap stainless often are highly abrasion resistant and difficult to deburr because of large or even clustering chromium carbides. In Europe, I would think about a simple breakfast knife, a so called Buckels, by Robert Herder, Solingen.
Very helpful with hand sharpening is the use of a sharpie and a loupe, say 8, 10 or 12x. It allows to verify whether the very edge got reached, and you're not just accumulating debris on top of the old edge, while thinning a bit behind it. Or overlooking a microbevel — don't ask how I know.
Hand sharpening isn't that hard. Before WW2, most men sharpened their own razor. Farmers used to sharpen their scythe.
The big advantage of hand sharpening over any system is in allowing good thinning behind the edge, in order to restore a blade's geometry while sharpening. I must admit I've seen very nice edges made with jig systems. But the intended geometry of the blade was lost. Great edges, poor cutters.

 

[photo41]

I have received the folding knife from an Amazon shop called Dessi.
The blade is legal 2.9 inches of damascus steel of 67 layers and a heart of VG10
It is a polished bone with some engraved brass bolsters.
After wiping the oil, of course, I tried the paper test which didn't work.
Surprise-surprise - needs sharpening...
I'll try it first with some veggies in a couple of days, time permitting

best wishes,
Valentin

 

[photo41]

here is my first review: I love the knife, seems very well-made. I have received the knife with Amazon Prime as expected, well packed and, to my surprise, accompanied by a lovely multi-tool card. Thank you
Reading through the other comments, I feel I must be really lucky, as none refer to mine: the handles are identical and decently finished (though I'd take the mammoth part with a pinch of salt like a joke); the engraving on the bolster seems very thorough - I couldn't believe it was handmade; the spring at the bottom of the blade holds it open and closed sturdy at about 5 mm from the back of the handle - surely there is no touch between them; the thick leather pouch is very solid - will take some leather conditioner to make it feel good in my opinion.
The blade was not really sharp so I intend to sharpen and polish it in a few days - I am sure the VG10 with 15 degrees will hold the edge well.
Now why only 4 stars and not 5...
It came with only a rough geometry of the blade and I'm not particularly fond of the 15 degrees edges, as it was not mentioned in the description (or I did not ask). So when buying it be sure that you give some time and attention to the sharpening, especially as the beautiful damascus pattern can easily get scratch.
Without being experienced I will have to use a special jig with increasing grain stones for a good quality sharpening and feel a bit tense around the damascus pattern - will have to somehow protect it to make sure it goes unscratched. So 4 stars instead of 5 because of the sharpening that I'll have to do.